The Narrows, and the Malpais near Grants, NM

[UncleMatt]

Hey All, I have recently been uncovering a lot of interesting information about the Narrows on the east side of the Maplais just south of Grants, NM. The Narrows is a narrow passage between sandstone bluffs to the east and malpais lava flow to the west. There are many tales of treasure and adventure associated with this area. I am encouraging people to post their stories they have heard on this thread.

I recently read on T-net about a possible explanation to the disappearance of a small plane over the malpais with a cargo of cash for a political campaign back east. That story pretty much closes the book on that plane treasure in the malpais as far as I am concerned. But there are many tales involving Spanish caches, Gus Raney, ambushed mule trains loaded with silver bars, and many more to keep a person interested in this region. And of course, it is a major landmark in the search for the Lost Adams Diggings. (Can't leave that one out)

So please post your malpais/narrows tales here. Especially if they are not already well known. Locals welcome! I travel to the area frequently, and love exploring it. If you are no longer able to get out in that rough stuff, I will be happy to be your legs if you will point me in a direction.

 

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[UncleMatt]

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/cache-hunting/31294-malpais-treasure.html

Here is the story about the plane crash in the malpais I referred to earlier

 

[Springfield]

Matt, here's one you may not have heard. I posted this about five years ago on another thread.


10/2009: I had a lengthy conversation with a local man whose grandfather was Sheriff of Hidalgo County, NM, for 55 years in the early 20th century. The word from grandpa was that the malpais gold that was guarded for so many years by Gus Raney was the proceeds from a Lordsburg bank robbery that Gus pulled off and managed to shift the blame to others who were eventually killed by a posse following the heist. Gus was a lawman himself in those days. He made off with three wooden boxes of freshly minted double eagles that were being held in the bank to be used for railroad payroll. When I get the time, I'm going to try to run down the old newspaper accounts of the robbery. [Note: I haven't done that yet]

 

[UncleMatt]

I had read that thread, and I post the link here

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/new-mexico/117152-el-malpais.html

 

[UncleMatt]

I knew it wouldn't take long for my friend Springfield to show up in this thread! Welcome!

Question is, where exactly is Gus Raney's old place? Anyone got a GPS on that?

 

[UncleMatt]

Let me know if you ever do run down that story about the Lordsburg robbery!

 

[Springfield]

I knew it wouldn't take long for my friend Springfield to show up in this thread! Welcome!

Question is, where exactly is Gus Raney's old place? Anyone got a GPS on that?

Just west of the intersection of 117 and that dirt road that comes up north from Pie Town - on the north side of 117 at the farthest south end of the lava flow. The ranch on the south side of 117 used to be owned by Bruce King.

 

[UncleMatt]

Thanks for that! Do you also know the location of the small volcano near there that the air force used to use for bombing practice?

 

[Springfield]

Thanks for that! Do you also know the location of the small volcano near there that the air force used to use for bombing practice?

No, but I think the bombing targets may still be visible on Google Earth. Seems like somebody posted a picture once on one of the threads.

 

[BIGSCOTT]

There are stories of an ancient civalization that was covered by the lava flow, people have happened upon small parts of it jutting out of the lava.

 

[UncleMatt]

I heard that before the highway was put in through the narrows that there were several water pools with unique colors to their bottoms and banks.But the water table was also much higher back then.

 

[Crow]

Gidday Uncle Matt

That robbery story Lordsburg bank robbery have you an idea what date this crime happened?

Crow

 

[BIGSCOTT]

Elizabeth Taylor's husband Michael Todd and three others crashed a lockheed and were all killed in 1958, somewhere around the malipias, when i first heard this story they were said to have crashed on mount Taylor north of I-40 they say that mount Taylor is the volcano that the lava flow came from.

 

[UncleMatt]

Crow, sorry for the delayed response, but I have no information on the Lordsburg robbery at all, but would like to find it out.

 

[BIGSCOTT]

I've always thought the narrows was a good place for a secret door, and a zig zag canyon, any one ever wet a pan there? i like the looks right around where the natural arch is.

 

[Springfield]

I've always thought the narrows was a good place for a secret door, and a zig zag canyon, any one ever wet a pan there? i like the looks right around where the natural arch is.

I think an army of guys have had that notion in days gone by because some of the LAD stories seemed to point to the Taylor lava flow, Ft Wingate, etc as the probable location. However, that land is essentially barren. There was some very limited placer supposedly found west in the Zunis as I remember, but not enough to mess with.

 

[Crow]

Crow, sorry for the delayed response, but I have no information on the Lordsburg robbery at all, but would like to find it out.

Hello Matt

here is a story from 1887 that may be of interest.



Crow

 

[UncleMatt]

From this link:

https://archive.org/stream/trainrobberiestr00pinkrich/trainrobberiestr00pinkrich_djvu.txt


"During 1902, 1903, 1904 and 1905, several train rob-
beries occurred in California, Colorado and Oregon. The
identity of the robbers could not be settled at the time but
we eventually determined that they were committed by
George and Edward Vernon Gates, brothers of California,
who on March 15, 1905, at Lordsburg, New Mexico, with
rifles attempted to commit a series of ''hold-up" robberies
and wdio killed themselves when the officers attempted to
arrest them. "

 

[UncleMatt]

San Francisco Call 11 April 1905 ? California Digital Newspaper Collection

DEATH ENDS CAREER OF GATES BOYS

Two of Copley Train Robbers Are Cornered by a Sheriff's Posse in a New Mexico Town and Killed

DETECTIVE THACKER IDENTIFIES BODIES

Long Pursuit of Murderers of 3fessenger W. J. O'Neil Closes in a Tragic Manner on the Southern Frontier

George and Vernon Gates, the Copley train robbers, whom the Southern Pacific and Wells-Fargo detectives have been eagerly looking for eevr since the commission of the robbery on March 31 of last year, have paid the penalty of their many offenses and now He burled in unmarked graves on the outskirts of Lordsburg, N. M. This Information was received yesterday by John F. Seymour, chief of Wells, Fargo & Co.'s secret agents, from Detective J. N. Thacker, who is now in Lordsburg, whither he started a week ago last Saturday on receipt of Information that the Gates brothers were in that locality. Thacker had hardly arrived In New Mexico when two men, who have since been identified as the Gates brothers, were shot by a Sheriff's posse.

According to the message received by Captain Seymour two men held up a saloon in Lordsburg on March 15 and with their loot hurried off to the mountains. Sheriff McGrath of Lordsburg immediately organized a posse and started In pursuit. After a hot chase the posse overtook the robbers at the town of Separ and when the two men showed resistance they were killed. The youthful appearance of the dead men caused the authorities of Lordsburg to institute an investigation with a view of discovering their identity, which, it is said was finally effected through photographs of the Gates brothers then in the possession of one of the Southern Pacific representatives of the Pinkerton Detective Agency of Chicago. THACKER IDENTIFIES BODIES.

Learning that Detective Thacker was scouting along the southern border In search of George and Vernon Gates, the authorities of Lordsburg communicated with him, and arriving at Lordsburg the San Franciscan promptly completed the work of identification. Thacker's message to Captain Seymour reads as follows: LORDSBURG }T. Mex.. April 10. — Captain Seymour Special W. F. — Just returned from Parral. Mexico. I find that George. Gates and Vernon Gates held up a saloon In Lordsburg, N. Mex.. on the 15th of March and were followed to &epar, N. Mex., by McGrath and posse and were killed while resisting arrest. They recovered the eix-shooters ajid all the money that was taken from the saloon. Bodies were brought back here to Lordsburg and buried. There Is no question as to the identity of the men, so you can notify the father, who Hve3 In Alameda, Cal., and I will send In photographs as soon ac I can get them. I am thowughly satisfied because I have seen some of the proofs George has gunshot wounds as described In circular. J. N. THACKER. Captain Seymour said last night that he was fully satisfied that the men killed at Separ were George and Vernon Gates. Several weeks ago the express company was advised that the Gates boys had been seen in New Mexico, apparently making for the border, and Detective Thacker, who was familiar with all the incidents of the Copley robbery, immediately started south with the idea of heading the robbers off and capturing them. It was Thacker's plan of intercepting the men before they could reach Mexico that accounts for the detective's -presence In Parral, from which jlace he was summoned to Lordsburg.

DARING AFFAIR RECALLED.

The Copley robbery was a daring affair that cost Express Messenger W. J. O'Neil his life and brought nothing to the robbers in the way of booty. On the night of March 31, 1904, the southbound Oregon express was held up at Copley, Shasta County, by three men. When they called upon Messenger O'Neil to open the door of his car he refused. The robbers then forced a brakeman to ran on the door and when O'Neil opened it a little way and showed himself he was shot dead. Then the robbers entered the car and. placing a package of dynamite on top of the express safe, retreated a distance and touched the explosive off. Unfortunately for their plan, however, the main part of the safe, in which was stored much coin, was not destroyed by the explosion. Consequently the robbers got nothing for their daring but murderous work. Realizing that their time was precious the robbers cut off from the train the first locomotive, and boarding it ordered the engineer to convey them to a point near Keswlck, where they alighted and disappeared in the darkness of the night. The next seen of the robbers was four days later, while they were making their way northward, and the fact that they had formerly lived in Amador County and were acquainted with mining caused the detectives to believe that the men were heading for the extreme northern part of the State.

THIRD MAN STIJLL MISSING.

Their identity waa not discovered by the detectives until a month later, when Patrick Crowley, then chief of the secret agents' bureau of the Southern Pacific, learned, through intercepted letters addressed to a woman in Shasta County, that George Gates was the leader of the trio of robbers. Later it was learned that his brother was with him on the night of the holdup and that the third man waa James Arnet, who had also been engaged in mining in Northern California, and like the Gates boys, had been suspected of many crimes, but had eluded arrest and conviction through the failure of his victims to properly identify him.

Rewards were offered for the arrest of the trio and their photographs were scattered broadcast, but from the night of April 5, 1904, up to several weeks ago, when the express authorities received a tip that the Gates boys were in New Mexico, heading for old Mexico, nothing definite had been heard of the robbers.

George Gates was 26 years of age and his brother Vernon 22. They were the -sons of a well-to-do mining man G. G. Gates, living with his daughter in Alameda, but at present visiting his old home in Amador County. The father endeavored in every way to induce his wayward sons to reform, but he had no influence over George and the latter influenced Vernon The whereabouts of Arnet is unknown to the detectives, who believe that he separated from the Gates boys in this Slate and is now somewhere in th<» Northwest.

 

[UncleMatt]

I'm not finding anything else online about a train robbery in Lordsburg, NM. Please post about it if you come across anything on that.